Feeder for corn-shredders.



, Patented JunA I.,A A @mk 'WITNESSES ATTORNEY CHRISTOPHER KIBAT, QF'BELV'KEERE, ILL'IS.

FEEIDER -FOR CORNeSHREDDERS.

To all whom it may .concert/i.'

Be it known that I, CHRISTOPHER Klear, a citizen of the United States, residing at Belvidere,y in the county of Boone and State of illinois, have inventedl a new and useful Feeder for Corn-Shredders, lof which 'the following is a specification.

The invention relates to improvements in feeders for corn Shredders.

The object of the present invention is to improve 'the construction of feeders for corn shredders, `and to provide simple, eii? cient'and comparatively inexpensive means for`mounting and supporting endless conveyers for positively feeding the material to the corn shredder.

vWith these and other objects in View, the f invention consists in the construction and novel' combination of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and pointed out in the claim hereto appended; it being understood that various changes in the form, proportion, size and minor details of construction,

.Within the scope of the claim, may be resorted to Without` departing from the spirit or sacriiicingany. of the advantages of the invention.

ln the drawings :Mlfigure 1 is a central longitudinal sectional view of the feeder. Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional view of .the saine, the main lower endless conveyer being illustrated in plan view. Fig. 3 is a transverse sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig.

1. Fig. e is a. detail perspective view, illustrating the construction for connecting the` slats with the side guides.

feeder, are `journaled in suitable bearings of main side guides .7, provided in their inner opposite faces with upper and lower longitudinal grooves tl and 9 and having terminal recesses 10, located at the ends of the grooves S and 9 and communicating with each of the Specification of Letters Eatent.

Patented June d, MM2.

Application led December 5, 1910. Seria No. 595,786.

sanie.- The longitudinal grooves 8 and 9 have parallel top and bottom Walls, and the side edgesthereof are located in the same vertical plane. The slats, which are preferably constructed of Wood, are equipped at their ends with laterally projecting slidable members `comprising rounded' tapered outer portions 11, an integral an nular collar or flange 13 and a flat lintegral shank 14. The shanks 14, which are of the Width ofthe slats, are interposed between the sameand the links of the endless sprocket chains and are secured to the same by bolts l5, or other suitable fastening devices, which pierce the terminals of the slats, the Shanks and the links and secure the said parts together. The rounded outer portion 11 projects centrally from the anf nular flange and isadapted to slide in the grooves or Ways of the side guide. The annular flanges or collars 13, which are located at the inner faces of the side guides, are arranged vertically and extend entirely across the grooves and fit againstthe side edges of the top and bottom walls thereof -and have an equal bearing against the same. These vertical flanges or col ars 13 form stops and hold the endless conveyer against lateral movement,

rflic side guides have mounted on it at an intermediate point bearing brackets 1S of approximately inverted U-shape form, cured the lower ends of their sides to the guides and provided at the top with bearings for the reception of a shaft 19 upon which are mounted blades or knives 20,

adapted to cut the bands of the material,

endless conveyor.

lotion' is communicated 'tothe rotary cutter from a lower sprocket'wheel Q2 mounted on a transverse shaft 2li, jourualed in suitable bearings 25 of the side guides and equipped with inner' sprocket wheels 26, keyed or otherwise secured to the shaft- 24 'and meshing with the upper and lower flights of endless sprocket chains and rotated by the same. The gearing for operating the cutter shaft yis located at one side of the feeder, and the shaft 2a is connected at the other sideof the machine by gearing with an upper relatively short endless eon'veyer, located above the rear portion of the main endless conveyor', and cooperating therewith to produce a force feed of thematerial to the corn shreddr. The upper endless conf veyer consists of a series of transverse slats 27, secured. at intervals t0 the links of opposite endless sprocketchains 28, and provided at the ends with slidable members 29 eensisting of castings and constructed similar to the laterally projecting slidable members of the slats of the main conveyer. The relatively short upper sprocket chains are arranged on front and rear sprocket wheelsl 30 and 31, fixed to front and rear shafts 82 and 33, which are journaled in suitable bearings of opposite guides 34. The side guides 34, which normally rest, upon the upper edges of the lside guides of the main endless conveyer, are constructed similar to the latter being provided at their inner faces with upper and lower grooves and having terminal recesses. The laterally projecting slidablc members operate in lthe grooves and support the slats and prevent the same from sagging' between the sprocket, wheels.` Motion is communicated to the upper endless conveyer from ay sprocket wheel 36, mounted on the intermediate transverse shaft, 24 of the main endless conveyer, and the lower flight of the upper endless conveyer is moved in the same direction as the upper flight of the main endless conveyer, and the two ceoperate to feed the material forwardly into the corn shredding machine.

The side guides, which constitutel the .frame of the upper endless conveyer, are

yieldably connected With the side guides of the lower endless conveyer by opposite front and rear coiled springs 38', suitably connected at. their terminals to the upper and lower sideguides, and yieldably maintaining the upper endless conveyer in contact with the material operated on by the feeder.

The rear shaft 6 of the lower endless convcy'er is connected by spur gearing with a pulley 4l, but sprocket or any other form of gearing may be employed for this p'urpose. The spur gearing comprises three gears 42, 43 and 44. The gear 42 is mounted on the rear shaft 6; the gear 43 is mounted on an intermediate stub shaft 45, and the other gear 44 is connected with the hub of the pulley 4l and is mounted on the shaft 46, which supports the pulley 41. The pulley 41 is connected by a belt 47 with a drivingl pulley 4S of the corn shredder, which when operated communicates motion to the upper and lower endless conveyors, that constitute a self feeder for the corn shredder.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by` Letters Patent, is

A feeder of the class described includinglr opposite side guides provided at their inner faces with longitudinal grooves having parallel top and bottomlwalls with their side edges located in the saine vertical plane, transverse shafts extending across the space between the guides, sprocket- Wheels mounted on the shafts, and an endless conveyer comprising sprocket chains located at opposite sides vof the conveyer and arranged on the sprocket Wheels, transverse slats extending across the space between the sprocket chains and having their termina-ls arranged at the links thereof, laterally projecting slidablc members consisting of flat shanks interposed between the links of the sprocket chains and the ends of the slats, integral annular stop iang'es arranged in a vertical plane and extending entirely across the grooves ofthe guides and fitting against the side edges of the top and bottom walls of the said grooves and having an equal ybearing at the top and bottom of the same, and outer tapered rounded bearing portions formed 'integral with the annular flanges and extending ccntrally from the saine and )'nojecting into the grooves to support the endless conveyer and maintaining the sprocket chain in mesh with the sprocket wheels` Aand fastening devices piercing the ends of the slats. the flat shanks ofthe slidable members and the links of the sprocket chains and securing the said parts together. l

lu testimony, that, l claim the foregoing as my own, l have hereto allixed my signature in the presence of two witnesses.

Witnesses A. J. Tiuri), J. Soo'r'r CLARK. 

